Ibn Batuta In The Maldives And Ceylon

The author reveals that the diary of Ibn Battuta, the famous Arab traveller of the fourteenth century who spent about nine months in Maldives between 1343 and 1344. He became a court advisor, married and divorced several times, shared his abode with concubines and slaves, and tried, unsuccessfully, to make Maldivian women cover their bodies. His account remains one of the most interesting ever written, except perhaps that of Pyrard de Laval. A must read for anyone interested in understanding Maldivian history. It contains the translation of the portion dealing with India, the Maldive Islands, and Ceylon from the second part of the Ri?lat, with an additional essay on the Ri?lat and a biography of the author. It was first published in 1882 as an extra number of the Journal of the Ceylon branch of Royal Asiatic Society.